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Report: Apple's Plans for ARM-Based Macs Could Be Announced at WWDC

ARM-based processors will start arriving in Macs next year, and we could hear more about it at the online-only WWDC later this month, Bloomberg reports.

Michael Kan
 & Michael Kan Principal Reporter

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Apple may end up announcing its plan to ditch Intel chips and move to ARM-based processors in Mac computers at WWDC later this month, according to a new report from Bloomberg. 

The announcement would give third-party developers time to optimize their apps for ARM-powered Macs, which are slated to arrive next year. The news would also mark the first time Apple has directly designed the processors inside Mac hardware, after previously relying on chips from Intel, PowerPC, and Motorola. 

Apple’s plan to transition from Intel chips to ARM architecture has long been rumored. According to Bloomberg, the company’s main gripe with Intel silicon is how the performance gains have slowed over the years, prompting Apple engineers to worry that future Macs would need to be delayed. 

“Inside Apple, tests of new Macs with the ARM-based chips have shown sizable improvements over Intel-powered versions, specifically in graphics performance and apps using artificial intelligence,” reports Bloomberg, which cites unnamed sources.

Despite the architecture change, the upcoming Macs will still use the existing macOS operating system. Reportedly, the ARM-based processors are also more power efficient, and may lead to thinner and lighter MacBook designs.  

To manufacture the chips, Cupertino is tapping Taiwan’s TSMC, which already produces the processors in iPhones. Currently, Apple has three Mac-based ARM chips planned, which will be built using TSMC’s latest 5-nanometer fabrication process. 

Related

If the news is true, then it represents another blow for Intel. The chipmaker is already facing pressure from AMD, which has been producing desktop CPU processors with impressive performance gains at better prices than Intel’s competing silicon. Now AMD chips are also starting to proliferate across new Windows laptops.

The online-only WWDC starts on June 22. However, Bloomberg notes Apple hasn’t set the ARM announcement in stone and could delay the news to a later time.

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About Our Expert

Michael Kan

Michael Kan

Principal Reporter

My Experience

I've been a journalist for over 15 years. I got my start as a schools and cities reporter in Kansas City and joined PCMag in 2017, where I cover satellite internet services, cybersecurity, PC hardware, and more. I'm currently based in San Francisco, but previously spent over five years in China, covering the country's technology sector.

Since 2020, I've covered the launch and explosive growth of SpaceX's Starlink satellite internet service, writing 600+ stories on availability and feature launches, but also the regulatory battles over the expansion of satellite constellations, fights with rival providers like AST SpaceMobile and Amazon, and the effort to expand into satellite-based mobile service. I've combed through FCC filings for the latest news and driven to remote corners of California to test Starlink's cellular service.

I also cover cyber threats, from ransomware gangs to the emergence of AI-based malware. In 2024 and 2025, the FTC forced Avast to pay consumers $16.5 million for secretly harvesting and selling their personal information to third-party clients, as revealed in my joint investigation with Motherboard.

I also cover the PC graphics card market. Pandemic-era shortages led me to camp out in front of a Best Buy to get an RTX 3000. I'm now following how the AI-driven memory shortage is impacting the entire consumer electronics market. I'm always eager to learn more, so please jump in the comments with feedback and send me tips.

The Best Tech I've Had:

  • My first video game console: a Nintendo Famicom
  • I loved my Sega Saturn despite PlayStation's popularity.
  • The iPod Video I received as a gift in college
  • Xbox 360 FTW
  • The Galaxy Nexus was the first smartphone I was proud to own.
  • The PC desktop I built in 2013, which still works to this day.

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